There are lots of single mothers who would like to return to college and study a course that will help them get a better position in life and support their child more easily.  Obviously if there is financial help available that makes doing this rather easier, then so much the better.

One major benefit available to single moms is the scholarship scheme.  A scholarship can enable a single mother to go to college, when they would not otherwise be able to afford to do so.  But it is important to recognize that there are a lot of scams out there today, and it is very easy to be caught out by one (or more) if you aren’t careful.  It is natural to be eager to find out all you can and apply for a scholarship as well, but this eagerness can be a tripping point if you allow it to be so.

This is particularly true when you are looking for relevant information online.  It is imperative that you go to the right websites to get honest and up to date information.  But it is so easy to find yourself in the wrong place – and the problem is that you may not even realize you are on a suspect website.

So how do you know that you are using a website you can trust?

Well firstly you should never have to pay a cent to get a scholarship.  The same applies to having to pay to fill out forms of any kind.  This is never, ever necessary because the government does not expect you to pay to receive financial aid.  If you think about it you will see the logic of this.  Make this your first point of reference – if a website asks you to pay anything, back away and go elsewhere.  There is simply no need for you to do so.  And for this reason, you should never give out any payment information or card details either.

Some websites that are on the dubious side also throw out a guarantee that you will definitely win the scholarship you want.  This is another thing to look for because once again you should know that there is no way you can be guaranteed such a thing.  A scholarship is given on the basis of many different factors.  It isn’t just a case of being asked a question and your answer of ‘yes’ or ‘no’ will decide whether you get it or not.  Instead it is a myriad of different questions and pieces of information that all need to be pieced together to get the answer of whether you will be given a scholarship or not.  As such, no one but the people who assess that information can give a final decision on whether you will get the scholarship you apply for.

As you can see, it is largely a matter of common sense and of keeping your eyes open to ensure you avoid all the scams that are out there.